Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s latest attack on transgender health care faced a wall of resistance on Wednesday after 19 states sued the Department of Health and Human Services.
Last week, Kennedy announced that HHS would stop funding health care providers that provide gender-affirming care to minors, a move that caused 19 states to sue the agency, Axios reported. The lawsuit claims the move exceeds Kennedy's authority as HHS Secretary and substantially violates the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs federal lawmaking procedures.
“By targeting Oregon providers, HHS is putting care at risk and forcing families to choose between their personal health care choices and their doctor’s ability to practice,” Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, a Democrat, said in a press release. “Healthcare decisions belong with families and their healthcare providers, not the government.”
The lawsuit contends that Kennedy's move will have an "immediate, significant, and harmful impact" on the 19 plaintiff states. Some of the impacts include hindering the states' ability to administer Medicaid programs in accordance with the law, and forcing states to exclude payments to providers "without process or authority."
"Gender-affirming care is legally protected in Colorado, and upending it would harm transgender Coloradans who depend on it. Secretary Kennedy’s so-called declaration is a blatant abuse of power and threatens to bankrupt hospitals and providers,” said Colorado Attorney General Weiser, a Democrat.